NATCHEZ — The City of Natchez and Natchez bar owners are taking a firm stand against loitering outside bars and clubs.

Mayor Butch Brown, Police Chief Danny White and Municipal Court Judge Jim Blough met Wednesday with approximately a dozen members of the Natchez Bar Owners’ Association.

During the meeting, the city officials and owners agreed that loitering outside clubs and bars has become an ongoing problem for the Natchez Police Department and property owners.

Brown said his biggest concern is the fights and shootings that are sometimes incited by loitering.

Brown said he has received complaints from neighboring residents about loitering and illegal activity outside and inside bars and clubs, particularly drug activity.

A few of the bar owners said they have problems with loitering not on their property, but on adjacent vacant lots.

Ronnie Robinson with Village Inn on Minor Street said his business has issues with people crowding the lot across the street and drinking.

Littering on those adjacent vacant lots and parking lots has also become a problem, the owners and officials agreed.

Resident Keith Benoist suggested that owners having problems with open lots try to contact those property owners about blocking off car access to the vacant lots.

Another issue addressed at the meeting was that of private security at bars and clubs.

Brown said he has gotten complaints that security guards do not enforce law violations inside certain clubs — mainly smoking marijuana — as not to deter patrons from frequenting the business.

A couple of the businesses employ off-duty police officers as security guard, but the authority the officers have when they are on duty and off duty differs, Blough said.

An off-duty police officer working security can make a citizen’s arrest.

As far as enforcement of loitering on private property, Blough said a bar owner or employee would have to initiate removing loiters from the property by calling the police. Officers could not, Blough said, come inside a bar or onto a private parking lot and start clearing them out without an owner’s permission.

At the suggestion of Brown and agreement of legality by Blough, the owners agreed to send letters to NPD authorizing them to come on their property and clear loiterers anytime.

The bar and club owners also told Brown they would like to see the city pass a “no sagging pants” ordinance.

W.C. Curtis, owner of Club Paradise, said the ordinance would encourage public decency among the community’s young men.

Brown told the owners they could post signs against sagging pants on their businesses. Blough said non-compliant patrons with sagging pants could also be charged with disturbing the peace of a business.

Andrew’s Tavern owner Sammy Atkins said he has problems with people having open containers on the public sidewalk in front of his bar.

“The open containers are completely out of control,” he said. “They’re not coming in my bar, but they are coming from somewhere, drinking and throwing Styrofoam cups on the sidewalk.”

Atkins said he has sat outside his bar several nights and never saw a police officer patrol Main Street. Atkins employs off-duty police officers as security guards, but the officers do not start the night until midnight.

The problem, Atkins said, mostly happens from 9:30 p.m. to shortly after midnight.

White said he would ensure NPD patrols and takes care of the problem on Main Street.

Solving the loitering problem in Natchez, Brown said, will take the cooperation and efforts of police and property owners.

Although Brown said the city shut down 17 “jukes” during his previous tenure as mayor, he said the goal now is to not shut down any businesses.

“We want you and your customers to enjoy good business and a good time, but we don’t want to do it at the expense of others,” Brown said.